Love Like No Other
by StormyWriter55
Summary: After the Whisperers start attacking the Communities, Magna and Yumiko help Michonne investigate the so called accidents. Things aren't all as they seem, however, when Yumiko is revealed to have a stalker. Can Magna protect her and keep her safe? Or will he get the best of both of them?
1. Chapter 1

"You're not my lawyer anymore," Magna stated as she jumped to her feet and walked away, leaving a concerned Yumiko behind. The raven hair women sat on the steps thinking about what she had done to piss her girlfriend off. The call she made outside of the wall was a split second one that may have saved their lives considering how many walkers there were. The words still rang in her ears though, bringing her back to the day that she met Magna.

_"Hello Ms. Hilker, my name is Yumiko Matsuura and I'll be your lawyer for the case," said the raven haired woman who offered her hand to Magna. The latter simply lifted her hands as far as they would go up, showing that she was chained to the desk.  
_

_"I told them I don't need a lawyer," Magna said, crossing her arms as much as she could while in the chains. Yumiko put her offered hand down, looks like this was going to be fun. Pulling a chair out, Yumiko sat across from Magna and grabbed her case file, having gone over it the night before. "Take these chains off my client right now," she said to the guard by the door. "And leave us at once." After the guard got done finishing what he was told to do, Yumiko turned her attention back to the woman in front of her._

_"Well, it is my job to represent you in court anyways, whether you like it or not," she opened the manilla folder, causing Magna to shift in her seat uncomfortably. This woman already had her case file and she hadn't even met her until a minute ago. "It says here that you killed a man in an alleyway, and it also says-"_

_"Yea I know what the police report says, Ms. Matsuura."_

_Yumiko lifted her eyebrows at the outburst. Not that she wasn't used to them, because she was. She is paid to represent anyone who can't represent themselves in court or can't afford a lawyer, so she has seen all kinds of people. However, she only dealt with those who she thought deserved her help. _

_Yumiko graduated from law school a couple years ago top of her class, so it didn't surprise anyone when she was offered a job by a major law firm right away. What did surprise them was when she refused the job and became a travelling freelance lawyer instead. She hasn't lost a case yet, and she didn't intend to. _

_"Okay Magna, can I call you Magna?" She looked at the brunette for a split second before returning her attention to the file below. "I can, and will, get you out of this case. You are not going to prison, not on my watch."_

_The way she said that had Magna believing her without a doubt, causing the brunette to smile. Neither one of them knew what they were in for._

As Yumiko made her way down the stairs to look for her girlfriend she was stopped by Michonne before she could get to the door.

"Hey, I could use your help if you're up for it? Your whole group, that is," she asked Yumiko with hopeful eyes.

"We'd love to help, let me gather the gang up Michonne," she answered the leader as she left to go find her group.

Having lived with these people for the past six years, it didn't take Yumiko long to find her group outside in the sunlight. Luke was playing a violin he found a few weeks back, a large group of people surrounding him. Connie and Kelly were dancing in the center of everyone, grabbing people and pulling them in to join the dance.

Yumiko smiled at the sight as she stood there and just watched, wishing that she could pull Magna into the circle, who she was sure would whine and complain about dancing, but she knew would give in.

"I know that look anywhere," a voice startled her out of her thoughts. "That's the look of longing," said a man who seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

Yumiko had seen him before, about a week or two ago. He was new to the community, a lone survivor found on the roads. She didn't like him.

No one in this day and age survived on their own out there. That means he is a coward who would sacrifice others as a way to live, or he was never in a group because he was scared that they'd see his true colors.

"I guess you could say that," Yumiko replied, crossing her arms as she sized this man up.

He was around her age, late twenties, early thirties, with an amazingly kept beard. His black hair was around shoulder length and fell in soft waves, it looked as if he had showered every day to keep it in such a clean condition. He wore blue jeans, a white t-shirt and cowboy boots that had the American flag on the sides.

"Would you like to dance?" He offered, holding his hand out to her with a flirtatious smile. Truth is, Yumiko _did _want to dance, just not with this man. She wished Magna were here.

"I'm sorry, I'm not much of a dancer," she lied to him, trying to find an out so she wouldn't have to dance.

"Come on, I'll lead us, it's not hard, I promise you'll be in good hands," he said once more, moving a little closer to Yumiko. Something about him just yelled danger to the woman and she couldn't explain why. He seemed nice enough, but there was an off feeling that she had got since he approached.

"I'm actually looking for my girlfriend, I thought she might've been around here somewhere, but I guess not," she stated, realization finally overcoming the man.

"Ah, well she doesn't have to know," he smiled, thinking he was sexy as he slipped his arms around her in broad daylight. Who the hell did this man think he was? "The name's Justin. What's yours?"

Yumiko tried to slip out of his grasp but tripped in her attempt, falling against the wall behind them, Justin pinning her down before he laughed at the situation.

"Get off me you disgusting-"

"Yumiko!" A voice called out from behind the pair, making both spin to see Magna approaching. The raven haired woman sighed in relief, never happier to see her girlfriend, even if they were fighting.

"That's an incredibly sexy name," Justin almost purred until Magna approached and ripped him off of her, giving her room to breath.

"Who the hell are you?" Magna asked as she made her way to Yumiko's side and slipped an arm around her lovingly, protectively. Even if she was slightly angry at her girlfriend for making the call to come back inside the wall earlier, all of that anger was now directed at this man she found close to groping her girlfriend.

"I'm assuming this is the girlfriend?" Justin asked as he gestured to Magna, ignoring her completely, his attention on Yumiko. He seemed unimpressed with Magna, thinking he was a million times better.

"Yea I'm the girlfriend, asshole!" Magna yelled, not loud enough to draw attention away from the dancers, but enough so that Justin could hear the anger in her voice.

"It's okay Magna, he was just leaving," Yumiko said calmly from behind her girlfriend who was between herself and Justin. She gently placed her hand around Magna's, rubbing soft circles to sooth the brunettes anger. "I promise I'm fine."

"I'll leave if you want me to, Yumiko," said Justin who was still receiving death glares from Magna. His question was directed to Yumiko, as if Magna wasn't even there. He seemed unfazed by the angry woman in front of him, his only care in the world at this point was the raven haired woman.

"I think it best if you leave, Justin," she stated as she moved out from behind Magna, their hands intertwined tightly.

"Okay, the offer still stands though," he said as he took a few steps away from the pair before turning around to speak to Magna for the first time. "You're invited too, maybe I could help you blow off some of that steam you seem to have built up," he winked before turning around to saunter away to the dance circle.

The first thing Yumiko noticed was just how angry Magna was. She hasn't seen her girlfriend this way in a long, long time, but Justin seems to have pushed all the right buttons. The second she noticed was after the wink he sent to them, the brunette was lunging forward, likely with bad intentions, so Yumiko grabbed her hand tighter and pulled her back.

"He isn't worth it, Magna. I promise you I'm fine, I just tripped when I was trying to get away from him and that's how we ended up on the wall," she said softly, grabbing both of her girlfriends hands now.

"I don't like him. Have you met him before?" She asked with worry in her voice.

"No, I met him right before you came. He asked me to dance."

"Well he seems obsessed with you," Magna said as he looked over to the man dancing in the circle of people. He caught the brunette staring at him and smirked before returning to dancing. "Promise you'll stay away from him?"

"I promise," Yumiko said seriously before nudging her girlfriends hip. "Besides, the only one I'm interested in dancing with is you."

Magna groaned, throwing her head back into the air.

"I can't dance, remember what happened last time you convinced me to dance?" Yumiko laughed at the memory.

"It wasn't _that _bad Mags."

"Yes it was, Miko. I nearly broke my ankle."  
"It was hardly bruised, you're just a baby."

"That is _not _what Siddiq said."

"Well I made it up to you that night, or did you forget?"

"Hmm, I may need a reminder of how that went later tonight."

Yumiko looked at her girlfriend, who she had never thought looked sexier, before grabbing her hand and leading them to their house.

"How about one right now?"

* * *

Later that morning at around noon, Judith, Magna, Luke, Connie, and Kelly were all loaded up into a car attached to the horses. Yumiko and Michonne had their own horses and were currently waiting by the gate.

"So we are heading to Oceanside to see what their accident is all about and if it's connected to the whisperers?" Yumiko asked as she pet her horse, Bartok, to calm him down. He was ready to go, as were the rest of them.

"Yes, and then we are going to Alexandria. We had an incident involving Negan last night that needs to be resolved. I invited you and your group along because I trust you all with this information and I need your help investigating the Whisperer incidents quietly. I also need someone to start coming with me in Carol's place to talk to Alpha...she can't come anymore."

It took Yumiko a minute to let all the information sink in as she silently started to braid Bartok's black mane.

"Ok, I'll come with you for the meetings. My team and I can also handle the investigation quietly. I'm assuming we can bring any information we find to you and Daryl?" She asked Michonne.

"Yes, Daryl will be helping you guys when we get to Alexandria. And the new guy, if he doesn't wear my patience thin and make me regret allowing him to come with us," Michonne complained loudly, catching the attention of Magna.

"You said new guy?" She asked from the wagon, her head snapping up.

"Yea he requested to come along a little bit ago. I couldn't say no to more helping hands."

"What's his name?" Yumiko asked nonchalantly as she undid the braid on Bartok.

"I think it's Justin. He said he used to be part of a Reconnaissance team in the Army or something, so I thought he could help you on the investigation. Is it going to be a problem?" She asked Yumiko in concern.

Before she could answer however, Justin slipped out of the stables, backpack on his shoulder and spear in hand.

"Sorry I'm late, I had to grab some supplies before we left," he said to Michonne, smiling to Yumiko when he saw her on her horse.

"You were supposed to grab another horse from the stable," Michonne told him as he was clearly without a ride.

"I tried but the stable hand said that someone took it out for a supply run," he glanced to the wagon that was overflowing with supplies and people, clearly no room for him. "Is it okay if I ride with one of you?" He asked politely, though the question was directed to Yumiko whose heart sunk.

"Here," Magna said as she grabbed her bag and knives. "Take my spot Justin, I'll ride with Yumiko," she said happily, hopping out of the wagon and making her way over to her girlfriends horse. Yumiko gladly slid to the back of the saddle, knowing that Magna liked to steer the horse, before she gave her a hand up onto the horse.

As Yumiko wrapped her arms around Magna like she had so many times before, she missed the murderous look Justin sent to the two women as they began their journey to Oceanside.

Later that night, when they had decided to stop for the day, everyone had settled into bed. Most of them slept in the wagon, but Magna had set up a hammock in the trees for herself and Yumiko until it was their shift to watch, everyone deciding it best to watch in pairs of two since they had the three horses to keep an eye on as well. Currently Luke and Kelly were on lookout, bringing comfort to Magna as she wrapped her arms tighter around the sleeping woman in front of her.

Earlier that night when they had started to cook dinner and plan a schedule for nightwatch, Justin had tried to take the second shift with Yumiko, but Magna wasn't having any of it.

"I'll take second shift with Yumiko?" Justin offered and before Michonne could approve it, Magna spoke up.

"Nice try buttercup, but I always take nightshift with Yumiko. Try again," she said, not once looking up from her dinner.

"That's a lie Magna, you always take watch with me when you're angry at Yumiko," Luke said merrily as he fussed around with his violin.

"Well I'm not mad at Yumiko now am I Luke?" Magna said angrily as she could feel Justin staring at her.

"Yes you are! This morning when she suggested we all come inside the wall-" Luke yelped in pain as Connie flicked him in the ear.

Connie looked to Luke before signing, "You're a dumbass. Can't you see that Magna doesn't like Justin? He's a little obsessed with Miko." Connie could tell all day while she was signing with the group that Justin couldn't understand any of it, making her confident as she talked to them that he couldn't understand what he was saying.

"Ohhhh," Luke said. It all made sense now why Magna had rode with Yumiko, why Magna and Justin had bickered with each other the entire ride today, and why she didn't want him on watch with Yumiko. Even Connie had noticed the disdain between her two friends and the newcomer Justin.

Suddenly Luke didn't like Justin either. Now that Connie pointed it out, he couldn't argue that Justin didn't seem to talk to any of the group except Yumiko, who had ignored Justin for the whole day. He looked over to Justin who was in the treelines now, but found him staring at Yumiko who hadn't noticed as she was in deep conversation with Michonne. Turning to Connie and Kelly, he signed out.

"Do you see how Justin is staring at Yumiko? It's creepy." Kelly nodded in agreement.

"I heard them earlier in the room talking about Justin. Magna said something about him pinning Yumiko against the wall earlier this morning."

"Okay so we are all in agreement that we don't like him?" Luke signed to the sisters who both nodded. "Good because I think he's the worst dancer in the world." The two sisters laughed before going back to their dinner.

Magna shifted in the hammock so she could hold more of Yumiko who was sleeping soundly with her head on Magna's chest, black hair sprawled all over. The brunette had positioned herself so she could face the ground by the wagon where Luke's bed was and Justin slept, giving the more comfortable spots to Connie, Michonne and Judith. So far Justin hadn't gotten up since they went to bed, but Magna wasn't taking any chances, not when he was so obsessed with her girlfriend.

"Mags?" Yumiko mumbled, sitting up slightly so she could face the brunette. "You're thinking too loud, go to bed baby," she leaned over and kissed Magna, hoping to get her to agree to sleep.

"I can't sleep when he's so close to us Miko, I don't trust him."

"I know, but Luke and Kelly are on watch and they would never let anything happen to us," she said as she grabbed a piece of Magna's untamed hair and started to play with it.

"I'm not worried about me Miko. He's obsessed with you, I don't like it," she shifted up in the hammock."And Michonne said he asked to come with us, and I bet it's because _you _came."

"I know Magna, but what can we do? We can't just be like, 'Hey Michonne, can we send Justin back to Hilltop because he can't stop staring at me and seems a tad bit obsessed?"

"A tad bit Miko? He only speaks to you, and Michonne when he has to. He doesn't acknowledge anyone else and flirts with you right in front of me. He's always trying to get you alone with him, and he absolutely hates me. He's obsessed with you, and I think Michonne is starting to notice it too," Magna said with contempt for Justin. She peeked over Yumiko's head to see that the man in question was still sleeping soundly, his back to them.

"Please just try to sleep baby, he isn't going to do anything while Kelly and Luke are on watch, and even if he does, he has to get through you first," Yumiko said reassuringly, wrapping her arms around Magna and settling into bed again. "I know he isn't stupid enough to try anything with you around," she said, popping up to give Magna a loving kiss. "'Coz you'd kick his ass."

Magna smiled at her girlfriends words, but they hardly settled her any, so she just wrapped her arms tighter around Yumiko and snuggled closer, falling asleep but still on alert for the slightest noise, neither noticing that Justin was indeed awake.

* * *

The next morning, as they were travelling to Oceanside once again, Magna kept watching Justin. She woke up in the early morning, when Michonne and Justin were on watch, and could've swore that she saw him near their hammock. Ever since then, she couldn't go back to sleep and it was starting to hit her as she stared at the empty road, save for the lone walker trailing behind them.

"How long till we're at Oceanside?" Magna asked Michonne, gripping the reins a little tighter.

"We should be there in about an hour, not too long," Judith answered from the wagon as she adjusted her Sheriff hat. Ever since the 9 year old took Magna and the group in, she had become friends with the younger girl. Every time she went to Alexandria, Judith was waiting by the gate for them, waiting for Magna really, and sometimes Yumiko.

Some days they would play hide 'n seek throughout Alexandria, the 9 year old winning every time, other times Yumiko would try and teach Judith to play chess, but the young girls favorite thing was when Magna showed her how to throw knives. She even promised Judith that if she ever beat Magna at knife throwing, that the older woman would give her one of her most prized knives.

"Okay, thank Jude," replied Magna, causing Michonne to lift her eyebrows in surprise.

"No problem Mags," she said with a goofy grin.

"So you let Magna call you Jude, but your own mother can't?" She asked her daughter in surprise, turning to Yumiko for support. "Some help here?"

"Yea Magna, since when is she allowed to call you Mags?" She asked her girlfriend, nudging her playfully. "You rolled your eyes at me for the first three months I called you Mags."

"I let Magna call me Jude because she's one of my best friends!" Judith tried to defend herself, throwing her hands into the air.

"I'm one of your best friends too!" Michonne said, causing Judith to role her eyes.

"Yea, but you're my mom. You're not as cool as Magna," she said like it was obvious.

"Oh that's it!" Michonne grabbed her water skin and threw some water onto Judith, causing a war to break out between the two.

"For the record," Magna started, turning around in the saddle as much as she could,"I only rolled my eyes because I couldn't be mad when you called me Mags. Everyone else I didn't allow to call me Mags, but you were different from the very start."

Yumiko smiled before kissing the brunette. She knew that Magna liked her from the very start, but she wanted her to admit to it, which she did.

"I love you," she said, wrapping her arms around Magna again.

"I love you too, Miko."

A couple hours later the group arrived at Oceanside, greeted by Rachel.

"Hello Michonne," greeted the young girl as she gestured for the stable hands to take care of the horses.

"Rachel," she nodded her greeting back. "Here's your supplies to fix the boat from Hilltop. They couldn't send all of it, but Alexandria is sending the rest soon."

"Thank you," she said as she led the group through the community. "Cyndie is out on the boat this week, so she left me in charge of your guys' stay."

"Thank you Rachel, I'll be down to talk to you and your council soon." Rachel nodded and left the group alone at a small hut which was for them.

"This place is a dump," complained Justin as he kicked part of the door.

"Hey, most of these people sleep outside, so be thankful that they even gave us the hut," Luke spoke up, knowing that his friend Jules doesn't sleep in a house.

"It's still a dump," Justin mumbles under his breath before hopping on an empty mattress. "Dibs on the bed!" He calls happily before spotting Yumiko. "You're welcome to join me, _Miko." _

"That's enough," Michonne scolded Justin, surprising everyone. Magna wanted to stay and listen to him get into trouble but decided to grab Judith's hand and take her outside. "I don't know what your obsession is with Yumiko, but it ends here Justin. She is dating Magna, everyone knows that, so leave her alone or I swear to God I will make sure you are moved to the exact opposite side of Hilltop from them. Do you understand?"

Justin's jaw was clenched so tightly Yumiko thought that he would break a tooth, but he nodded his head before grabbing his spear and leaving the hut.

"Thank you Michonne," said Yumiko. The two of them had become good friends since they met, even though Michonne was weary of her group at first.

"It's no problem. I have to go talk to Rachel and their council, but when Justin gets back you guys can head out and investigate the boat wreck. It's a few miles down the shore, and Oceanside is sure that the Whisperers had something to do with it, but they don't want to worry their people, so be quiet. Good luck," said Michonne as she walked outside to grab Judith who she found throwing knives with Magna.

A half hour later the group arrived at the shipwreck. It wasn't a big boat by any means, hardly enough to house four people, but Oceanside relied on this boat for transportation. The boat, which was hazardously docked and tied to an old dock that looked to hardly be standing, was obviously tampered with. On the side was a golf ball sized hole, the metal going inwards, indicating that something was planted on the outside. Probably a small bomb, Yumiko decided. They all hopped off the horses and onto the beach.

"It looks like a small bomb was here," she told everyone else who was on the ship investigating. Thankfully Oceanside hadn't left the docks, or their people would be stranded in the ocean or worse, the ship long forgotten at the bottom of the ocean.

"That means that whatever they used has got to be in the ship or at the bottom of the water," Magna said, making her way inside the small cabin, waist deep in water as she looked for the bomb. "It's not in here," she stated as she head back outside with Yumiko.

"Here, hold my stuff Mags," said Yumiko as she passed her girlfriend her bow and quiver, taking off her boots and shirt as well.

"No, you don't know what's in the water Yumiko," Magna argued weakly. She didn't like the idea of Yumiko going into the water alone. "I'll come with you," she said as she set the bow and arrows down, determined to go in the water with her girlfriend.

"No Magna, you're not the best swimmer," Yumiko laughed and kissed her on the cheek.

"I can go," offered Justin, as the rest of the gang made their way to shore. "I was part of a Recon team, I'm an expert swimmer."

"Absolutely not," Magna said to his offer. It was bad enough that he was currently staring at Yumiko shirtless, and she sure as hell didn't want him in the water with her.

"I'll be fine Mags," offered Yumiko. "I was captain of the swim team back in the day, besides the water isn't that deep. It looks to be about 12 or 13 feet," she said as she looked at the deepest part, not able to see the bottom.

Magna growled in frustration. She knew that she wasn't the best swimmer, hell she was terrified of thunderstorms. Luke and Connie weren't good options either, and Magna knew Kelly was scared of deep water. That only left Justin.

"Fine, but if he does anything or touches you, I swear to God I'll kill him," Magna finally gave in, making Justin smile as he took his shirt and boots off as well.

"Don't worry Magna," he said as he followed Yumiko into the water. "The adults are on it!" He doves backwards into the dark water, followed by Yumiko, both disappearing from her sight.

The rest of them sat down on the sand as they waited for Yumiko and Justin to find what caused the wreck, and if it had been an accident caused by nature, or if it really had been the whisperers. The two of them had popped up for air about 6 or 7 times when they finally resurfaced again with good news.

"It looks like a small bomb was indeed used," said Justin as they treaded water.

"We're about to go back down and grab the remnants of it as evidence," said Yumiko as she held onto the side of the boat. "I don't know how the boat hasn't sunk yet, it looks like a fallen tree under the water is barely holding it up. Oceanside got lucky," she smiled, happy that she was about to get out of the water. It was absolutely freezing in the shaded section, and going so deep it was even colder.

"Okay Yumiko, you ready?" Justed asked, she simply nodded.

"See you soon," Yumiko said to Magna, throwing in a wink for good measure. When she saw the brunette smirk Yumiko went back to work underwater.

As Yumiko made it to the bottom her hands immediately started searching for parts of the bomb and she had found a few pieces. She saw Justin next to her, who had also collected a few pieces, but he was swimming up for what she assumed was air. Returning her attention back to gathering pieces of the bomb, she hadn't noticed that Justin didn't resurface, and instead made his way to the branch that was hardly holding the boat up.

Checking back to Yumiko to make sure she wasn't watching, he pulled out his knife and began sawing away at the branch. It wasn't long until the weak limb was about to snap, and so Justin put his foot on it and kicked out, effectively snapping the branch and moving out from under the boat at once. The last thing he saw was Yumikos horror filled face looking up to see the boat falling towards her.

Magna was starting to worry when she saw the boat start to move. At first she thought she was imagining it, but as she looked closer she saw that the boat was suddenly sinking, and very fast at that.  
"Yumiko!" She shouted as she ran knee deep into the water, waving her hands frantically. Magna was relieved to see black hair break the surface just as the boat completely went underwater. Her relief was short lived, however, when she noticed it wasn't Yumiko. It was Justin.

The rest of the group was beside Magna in the water as they all waited to see Yumiko, until finally Magna couldn't take it anymore.

"Where is she!" She yelled to Justin who was staring at where the ship had gone down, sand kicking up all around him confirming that the boat had hit the ocean floor. He smiled while his back was still turned to the rest of the group before he put his fake face on.

"I don't know!" He shouted with fake horror in his voice. "I'm going back under for her!" He said as he saw Magna coming into the water. She may not be the best swimmer, but she didn't care.

As Justin went back under water it was ten times harder to see anything as he scanned through the sand to where he last saw Yumiko. It took him a few seconds but as he got to the ocean floor her could see her black hair flowing in the water. She looked to him as she desperately tried to free herself.

When the boat sunk it had tipped while going under, its massive mast now pinning Yumiko's leg and arm. As Justin approached he knew he wasn't going to be able to get her out and swam back to the surface where he was met with Magna.

"It's no used, she's stuck under there Magna," he tried to say. He should've known it wouldn't work as she pushed past him to where she saw him last come up. Just as she was about to go down he grabbed her, trying to stop her.

"Let go of me!" She screamed, lashing out with her elbow to his nose. She heard a satisfying crack, but didn't stick around as she dove under water. The first thing she noticed was her eyes were burning from the water, but she couldn't care less as she continued to swim down. The second thing she noticed was that Justin was right. When she found Yumiko her leg was pinned under the old wooden mast of the boat, cables floating around the two.

Yumiko saw Magna and thought she was hallucinating. Her airways were demanding air, and she couldn't stop herself as her mouth opened and she started swallowing water, her brain hoping that it would find air. The last thing Yumiko saw before she stopped breathing was Magna, her loving, beautiful Magna.

As Magna saw her girlfriend stop breathing she was starting to panic. She needed air so desperately but if she left Yumiko's side now it would be pointless to come back down. She was about to give up when she got an idea. Magna made her way to Yumiko's trapped leg and started furiously digging at the sand, her lungs screaming at her to get some air. Just when she thought she couldn't go anymore, two more sets of hands made themselves present. She looked over to see that Kelly and Luke had made their way to her side and began digging at the sand as well.

With all three of them working at it, it didn't take them long to free Yumiko, who was grabbed by all three sets of hands and brought to the surface. As Magna hit the surface she started gulping air in, never more glad for her friends than she was in that moment as they swam to shore. When they got there Luke and Kelly laid Yumiko in the sand. She wasn't breathing.

"She's not breathing," Magna whispered, collapsing next to her girlfriend as she started CPR, exhausted. Luke, Connie and Kelly held onto each other as they silently cried. Justin stared at the women in front of him with curiosity. He was sure she would have died, yet here she was. What felt like forever was really only about half a minute when Yumiko finally coughed up unbelievable amounts of water before she went unmoving again.

"Is she dead?" Kelly asked fearfully.

"No," Magna stated, never more relieved to feel Yumikos heart beat. "She's just unconscious." Magna felt numb, like this whole thing was just some scary nightmare and she would wake up with Yumiko next to her in bed at any moment. The cold wind blew, reminding her that this wasn't a nightmare. Then, she felt angry. Jumping to her feet Magna rounded on Justin. "What the hell happened down there!" She screamed at the man, his nose still bleeding. "How come my girlfriend ended up on the bottom of the ocean and you were perfectly fine!" She yelled louder this time, getting in Justin's face.

"Back the hell up right now. I had nothing to do with it!" He said right back to her. "Your dumbass dyke girlfriend is the one who wasn't fast enough!"

"What'd you just call her?" Magna said, anger seeping out of her. "You're obsessed with her! Ever since you met her she has rejected you, is that why you did it, huh?" She screamed, shoving Justin away from her. "Admit it!" Magna screamed again as she pushed him. 

"I didn't do it!" He screamed. Magna's fist connected so hard with Justin's face he saw stars as he fell onto his ass.

"Magna!" Yelled Kelly. "He isn't worth it right now! We need to get Yumiko to a doctor, she still hasn't woke up and she's whiter than paper. Her legs also got a pretty nasty gash on it." As Kelly said this Magna felt like a horrible girlfriend and turned her attention back to Yumiko who was surrounded by the group. Somehow they had gotten Yumiko's dry shirt and boots back on her, with Luke's large coat wrapped around her. She was currently being held by him as he made his way to the horse that Magna and her rode earlier.

As Magna got onto the horse, Luke passed up Yumiko, who was colder than Magna had ever felt her before. She cradled her girlfriend to her chest as she grabbed the reins and kicked the horse into moving. She didn't wait as Kelly and Connie mounted up onto their horse, and not as Luke got on his, and definitely not as Justin crawled out of the sand and grabbed his clothes before rushing to catch up with the group.

It felt like a lifetime before they made it back to Oceanside. Once their people saw that something was wrong, they grabbed Yumiko and whisked her girlfriend away impossibly fast. As Magna hopped off her horse to follow them her knees collapsed and two strong arms lifted her back up.

"Magna, what happened?" Michonne asked. "Was she bit?"

The brunette stared at the door of the hut that her girlfriend was taken to, it was seemingly forever away.

"Ask Justin what happened," she simply stated as Michonne helped her to her feet. "She wasn't bit." And with that, she walked away to find her girlfriend.

Michonne looked around the group and it didn't go unnoticed that they were all soaking wet, except Connie. She made her way to Luke, Kelly and Connie's side to find out the full story.

"What happened out there?" She asked the trio.

"The boat..." Luke trailed off. "It looked like someone planted a small bomb on it, so Yumiko went in the water to try and confirm the theory. None of us are any good at swimming," he said, gesturing around to the group. "So Justin offered to go in and help her. It was going fine but the boat was barely being held up by a tree limb. Next thing we know, they both went under water, but only Justin came back up."

Michonne nodded her head at the story.

"Looks like I need to go find Justin then," she stated. "You all go to the fire and get warm, I'll let you know what I find out."

* * *

Later that night, Magna was sleeping next to Yumiko in their small infirmary. The Doctor that they had said that Yumiko was deprived of oxygen for a long time so she may be in a coma for awhile. What really hit Magna was the fact that the Doctor said that Yumiko could have brain damage. Anywhere from her motor skills to speaking difficulty. He said that since she wasn't under water for too long that the damage should be minimal, or even nonexistent. As for her leg, he stitched it up and said she should stay off it for a few weeks but should otherwise be fine.

As she lay in bed, Magna couldn't help but think about what happened in the ocean today. Somehow, she knew that Justin had something to do with the boat. He then had the nerve to try and stop Magna from saving her girlfriend.

All she knew was that she had to protect Yumiko from Justin until she could prove his intentions were bad. And she was going to do everything in her power to do that.


	2. Chapter 2

When Yumiko woke up she couldn't move. Her chest felt like it was on fire, and her leg ached.

"Mag-" she coughed, her throat dry. "Magna," she whispered louder this time, her hands reaching out to both sides of her until she felt the body next to her. "Magna, baby, are you awake?" The brunette shot up out of bed.

"Miko?" Magna said in awe as her hands cupped her raven haired girlfriend. "You're awake!"

Waking up to the sight of her girlfriend smiling so widely at her was the best feeling in the world to Yumiko.

"I'd ask for some water but I'm scared I'll drown again," said Yumiko as she slowly tried to sit up. That was a bad idea, she quickly realized as her chest groaned in protest.

"Yumiko don't move, I'm going to get the doctor!" Magna jumped off the bed to do just that when her girlfriends weak voice called out to her.

"No Magna, I just want a moment alone with you," she whined as she was about to sit up again. Seeing this Magna made her way back to the bed and gently laid down, careful not to move the mattress.

"How do you feel?" Asked the brunette as she grabbed a piece of her girlfriends hair and softly started playing with it.

"It feels like a boat fell on me and I drowned," Yumiko laughed gently, Magna didn't.

"Because it happened Miko, and you died," stated Magna as she recalled the incident a few days ago.

"I'm here now Mags, and I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon, so please kiss me?" She asked, puckering her lips.

"Fine, but only because I haven't kissed you in three days," she gave in and met Yumiko's waiting lips eagerly but caring as to not hurt or cause her any discomfort.

"Is that how long I've been out for?" Yumiko hummed against her lips, settling her head on the brunettes shoulder as she was still drained of energy.

"Yea," stated Magna. "Hey Miko?" She asked hesitantly. When the slightly taller woman hummed Magna continued. "Do you remember anything from the incident?"

"No...the last thing I remember is Justin going up to get air...the boat falling...and then I remember you coming down to save me. You looked like an angel Mags, you _were _my angel. I thought I was dead, but then I saw you, and I knew. I just knew I was going to be alright, whether I died or not, because you were there."

"Yumiko don't say that...as long as I'm here I won't let anything happen to you. I'm so sorry that I let you go in the water with Justin, I should've been the one to go in with you, I should've-"

"Shh, Magna no. I don't want any of that. I chose to go into that water, and I'm the one who said it was alright for Justin to be my spotter. It is not your fault that the boat fell, it was just bad luck."

"Was it though?" Magna asked skeptically. She hasn't been able to keep tabs on Justin since she had spent every minute of every day by Yumiko's side, waiting for her to wake up.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, was it an accident or did Justin try to kill you?" Yumiko looked uncomfortable with the thought of this. She wasn't used to the living trying to kill her, only the dead. Sure there were a few incidents that included the living where it was her or them, but she hasn't had to deal with that in a long time.

"I don't know Magna, I mean sure he's obsessed with me, but to the point of killing me? I don't know, it all seems kind of far fetched. I think it was just a crazy, wild accident."

"I don't know Miko, all I do know is that Justin will never be near you again," said Magna as she slowly crawled out of bed. "I need to go find the doctor though, he said that with you being under the water and without oxygen for over 3 minutes, there could be some, uh..." she trailed off, not knowing how to finish the sentence.

"There could be brain damage, I know Magna, did you forget I used to be pre-med?" Magna smiled at the reminder. Yumiko was practically the mother and doctor of their group.

"I did forget, I'm sorry," she leaned down and kissed her girlfriend on the forehead. "I'll be right back, don't fall asleep baby."

Five minutes later Magna, Michonne and the doctor returned to the room and Yumiko was dressed into her regular clothes.

"So I guess we can take motor functions off of the list then," said the doctor. Yumiko smiled as Magna made her way to her side, Michonne taking a seat in the corner.

"You should've waited for me Miko, I could've helped you," said Magna as they sat on the bed, their hands intertwined.

"I sat up and felt fine," said Yumiko in defense. "I guess I should've waited, I'm sorry."

"The sooner we begin, the better," said the doctor, a man in his late forties with already white hair. "I'm just going to ask you some basic questions and ask you to perform a few simple tasks to determine if there is any brain damage and we can go from there, okay?" Yumiko nodded her head and began the simple physical tasks that the doctor gave her.

It was about half an hour later that all of the physical tests were done, Yumiko having passed them with flying colors.

"Okay Yumiko I heard you're quiet good with a bow, is that right?" He asked and she nodded, a strong headache forming. "I would like to see you try and go through some basic motions with the weapon, do you feel up for that?"

"Anything to get out of this hut," she answered with a laugh, accepting Magnas hand up. As they made their way out the door they were hit with the cold morning air, Yumiko taking a deep breath, the action causing her chest to ache in pain, reminding her that she had died a few days ago.

"Yumiko!" Shouted Kelly who rushed over to them, Connie and Luke not far behind with big smiles plastered on their faces.

"Hey guys," she said, weakly giving each of them a hug. "It's great to see you all."

"How do you feel," Connie signed to Yumiko, who stared at her as if she were crazy, a look of confusion on her face. She didn't undedstand the sign language, and she should. She's been doing it for years.

"C-can you repeat that Kelly?" She asked as Connie shot her a worried look. The doctor looked at his patient in concern.

"Yumiko, her name is Connie," he said, putting his hand on the taller woman's shoulder. "Kelly is over there," he said, gesturing to the other sister. Yumiko looked at him like he was crazy before she laughed.

"No, I've travelled with these guys for the past six years, that," she gestured to Connie who was reading her lips,"is Kelly. Connie is right there," she said as she gestured to Kelly. Everyone around Yumiko shifted uncomfortably until Magna stepped up to her girlfriend, taking her hand.

"Yumiko..." she said gently as her girlfriend kept looking between Connie and Kelly, her brain trying to process what she was seeing and connect the right names to the right people. "You have Connie and Kelly mixed up, the doctor is right. Kelly is over there," she said, her heart breaking for her girlfriend.

"N-no that can't be," Yumiko whispered, her head shooting between the two sisters. "That is Connie!" She said, louder this time. As she continued to look between the two sisters she finally realized that the doctor was right. Just for a split second, when she thought really hard and concentrated, she could tell which one was Connie and which one was Kelly.

"That's okay Yumiko," said her doctor calmly. "This is common with drowning incidents. Let's keep moving to see how far the damage with your memory to objects and people are so I can give you a full diagnosis."

Yumiko nodded her head as they made their way to a small hut. It looked familiar but she couldn't place her finger on it. As she walked in, Magna grabbed her weapons, both making their way back outside.

"Okay Yumiko, can you show me how you fire your bow?" Asked the doctor who was watching intently, as were the rest of the group.

"Yea," she said as she turned to Magna, holding her hands out for her weapons.

"Can you also name all of your equipment as you arm yourself?"

"Sure thing Doc," she said, reaching for her bow. "This is my bow," she said, reaching for the next item that Magna held out to her. "This is my knife," she said, the words coming easily as she slipped her knife onto her belt. "And this is..." she reached for the last item. Yumiko knew exactly what they were used for and what they did, but the name wasn't coming to her lips. "These are my...um, my..." she trailed off again, closing her eyes in concentration as she ran her finger through the feathers. It felt like an eternity in silence before it finally hit her. She didn't know what she was holding. She knew what they were and what they did, but she couldn't name them. "I-I don't know what they are." She turned to Magna.

"Hey it's okay Miko, we'll get through this together, okay?" Magna said as she reached for the arrows from her girlfriend. She was shocked when Yumiko pulled away from her, cradling the quiver closer to her body.

"No, Magna. I know what these are, I know what they do, but why can't I name them?" She asked as she turned to the doctor who was looking at her with pity. He didn't want to break the news to her.

"These are your arrows, Miko," Magna said, putting her hand over her girlfriends, trying to offer some form of comfort.

"Yumiko, so far you've passed all the physical tests with flying colors, however, it seems that due to the lack of oxygen, your cerebrum was affected the most. Now I'm no neurosurgeon, nor was I ever, but I can confidently say that physically you're fine. You may get a few severe headaches every once in awhile, and chest pains will be common for the next month or so, and your leg will heal in time, but this damage, to your head," he said softly before sighing,"I'm afraid it's typically permanent. In time you will get used to it, your brain will find new ways to overcome this new setback. I'm sorry," he said sincerely before walking off. "Perhaps the doctor in Alexandria or even Hilltop can help you, but practice your speaking and don't get frustrated with yourself."

After the doctor left the group and Michonne, Yumiko had felt...well she didn't even know how she felt. She couldn't think of the word. It was all too much for her.

"Yumiko," Magna said, gripping her hand tighter. "How can I help you?"

"I-I need some air," she admitted, dropping her girlfriends hand as she made her way to the edge of the camp with her bow, knife, and arrows. Even as she stared at the feathered sticks, she had to concentrate on their name. As she left the camp she looked back to see Kelly holding tightly to Connie, or was it the other way around? Yumiko had no clue and a headache started to form as she found a tree and climbed a few branches up.

As she sat there, she scanned through everything in the woods, naming them aloud to herself.

"Leaves," she said as she grabbed a handful of the item in question. "Caterpillar, bark, clouds," she focused back onto the arrows in her hand, her mind coming up blank. "Ah!" Yumiko screamed in frustration, throwing her quiver of whatever they were to the ground in anger.

"Ouch!" A voice called from below her. "Yumiko?" He asked in disbelief, rubbing his head.

"Oh, Justin, I'm sorry," she said, adjusting her position in the tree. "I didn't see you down there."

"That's okay Yumiko," he said, smiling. "How are you?"

"I'm fine," she said quickly, almost too quickly as he frowned at her.

"Are you sure? You seem upset," he said from below her, picking up her quiver. "Not to mention that you threw your arrows at me."

"Arrows..." she said to herself, catching them in the air when Justin threw them to her. "Thanks."

"No problem," he said, flashing her a charming smile. "So what're you doing out here?" He asked instead, curiosity getting the better of him.

"I just needed some air," she answered, pulling her legs closer to herself as the bark of the tree dug into her skin.

"Yea I bet, after you almost drowned and all," Justin laughed a bit at his joke.

Yumiko hadn't seen him since the

accident, but his face was busted up since the last time. She immediately knew who did it and laughed. She didn't think she could be any more in love with someone than she was with Magna.

"What's so funny?" He asked.

"Your, um," she thought hard for the word she was searching for before giving up and gesturing to her face. "You're all busted up, and I would bet my bow that Magna did it."

"Oh," he smiled, he couldn't help it when Yumiko laughed, it automatically brought a smile to his face. Even if she was laughing about how her girlfriend beat him up, they wouldn't be laughing soon, he thought to himself. "Well I should be going before Magna comes to finish the job," he said, gesturing to his face.

"Yea," Yumiko agreed. "Good idea."

"See you later, Yumiko."

As Justin left, going away from the camp, Yumiko decided she had gotten enough air and hopped down from the tree to head back to camp. As she entered she wasn't surprised to find Magna waiting for her by the entrance, cleaning her knives. Not far behind her was Connie, Kelly and Luke. Michonne was nowhere in sight.

"Hey," Yumiko said as she approached, putting her bow and quiver down as she took a seat next to the group. They all looked at her in concern. "I'm sorry," she lifted her hands to sign out what she was trying to say but her hands didn't know how to do it. She knew Connie could read her lips, but she shouldn't have to. Yumiko knew how to sign to Connie, she had for years, and now her brain couldn't work properly to allow her to sign.

"It's okay Yumiko," Connie signed out, grabbing her friends hand.

"She said it's okay," Luke spoke up for the deaf girl. "And it will be Yumiko, we've gone through worse. Remember the time we got locked in a zoo?" He recalled, making Yumiko smile.

"Yeah, that was pretty," her mind went blank with the word she was looking for. "Um, it was pretty," she closed her eyes and thought really hard of the word she was trying to say. "Horrible!" She said suddenly, relief and happiness flooding her at finding the word.

"We will get through this," Magna said as she set her knives down to sign to Connie as she spoke. "Like Luke said, we've been through far worse. This is hardly a setback," she reached for her girlfriends hand who grabbed it back eagerly.

"I saw what you did to Justin's," her mind went blank with the word she was trying to say once again. It was increasingly frustrating to Yumiko but she knew that with her family around she would be just fine, so instead she motioned to her face to let them know what she was talking about. Once they got what she was saying they all laughed, Magna smiling at the memory.

"I did that because he is a creepy asshole who deserved it, and he is never to be alone with Yumiko again," she said the last part to the group, who all nodded in agreement. The last time they let Justin near Yumiko it almost killed her.

"Well you already failed at that," Yumiko said. "He was in the woods with me today. I accidentally threw my quiver at his head," she laughed. "But I agree. The guy gives me some seriously bad vibes."

Luke reached over and put his hand on her shoulder.

"I promise that you'll never be alone with him again."

"Or at all if I can help it," said Magna as she searched the busy community buzzing around them.

"Thank you," Yumiko said suddenly. "Thank you for saving me, I mean," she said again, this time to Luke and Kelly.

"Oh it was no problem," Luke waved it off with a smile. "Besides it's the least I could do for you after the zoo."

As the group sat there and talked, occasionally having to help Yumiko with some words or correct her on the sisters names, they seemed happy again. Little did they know that was all about to change.

* * *

"How you feeling Yumiko?" Asked Magna for what felt like the hundredth time that day. They had left the very next morning after Yumiko woke up and were on their way to Alexandria, unfortunately with Justin.

Michonne had tried to send him home the day before saying that the group was fine on their own, but he had said he didn't feel comfortable travelling home alone, and Michonne couldn't argue. Luke offered to escort him back to Hilltop but that had gone poorly when Justin brought up the incident.

"Luke, you're not the most athletic, and it was shown when Yumiko was drowning and you stood on shore until the last moment," Justin bit at the older man, who looked hurt by the fact.

"At least he _tried _to save her, so you don't have the right to say that," Kelly said back. "You're such an asshole."

"Oh I'm the asshole? At least I'm not afraid of the water. Yeah, I saw how you hesitated before you went in with Luke. Don't act like some hero when you're not!" Justin shouted now from his horse. They decided Yumiko should be in the wagon with her leg up for most of the trip, and since they dropped the supplies off at Oceanside there was now plenty of room.

"She is a hero!" Magna snapped, her fists clenching tightly as not to lash out at the man physically. "You said that there was no way to save Yumiko, and you didn't even try. And if you ever touch me again, or anyone on my team, I promise you your nose won't be the only thing broken," threatened the brunette.

"Oh and what if I touch Yumiko, hmm? What're you gonna do Magna? I let you punch me back by the boat because I was shocked. You try it again, you're going to be in for a rude awakening," he snarled.

"You even go near Yumiko again I swear to God I'll -"

"Okay that's enough," Yumiko intervened. "We have a kid on the wagon, so save it for later," she said. She could see that Michonne was trying to come up with a valid excuse to get Justin away from the group but failing miserably.

"When we get to Alexandria," Michonne spoke up from her horse. "Justin you are going home. It's obvious that you can't be a team player, and I will find someone capable of escorting you home." Justin scoffed and rolled his eyes at this.

"Of course," he said, kicking his horse to ride ahead of the group, throwing a wink over his shoulder to Magna and Yumiko.

"Who the hell does he think he is!" Connie signed angrily. The longer that Yumiko watched her sign, the more it came back to her. When she tried to answer however, her hands just didn't seem to make the connection.

"It's okay Connie," Kelly signed. "We don't have to deal with him for much longer."

"Yea but what about when we get back to Hilltop," Luke signed for Connie as he spoke, struggling as he held the reins as well, Judith next to him. "He's always going to be around."

"We'll figure that out when we get there," Magna decided, leaning back before returning her attention to her knives again.

"Hey Yumiko?" Judith spoke up for the first time since the argument broke out. The raven haired woman turned her attention to the nine year old who was climbing to the back of the wagon before sitting down right beside the woman in question.

"Yes Judith?"

"Why is Justin so mean?" She asked sincerely.

"Judith Grimes!" Michonne scolded.

"No it's okay," Yumiko assured her. Michonne wasn't convinced but didn't say anything. "Justin is mean because he's a," her mind went blank again. _Shit._

"He's a bully," Magna spoke up, her eyes never leaving her knives.

"Yes!" Yumiko said, happy to hear the word. "He's a bully. Do you know what bullies do?"

"Mom says that bullies tease and hurt others because they've been hurt, so we should kill them with kindness." Yumiko smiled and looked up at Michonne, who was also smiling.

"Well your mother is a very smart woman," Yumiko admitted as she stared at the treeline.

"So why don't you guys try to kill Justin with kindness if he's a bully?" Judith asked. "It's always worked for me when the boys at home pick on me or RJ."

"Sometimes, bullies can't be killed with kindness," Michonne spoke up, taking over for Yumiko. "Justin is one of them, sweetheart. He's a different kind of bully."

"Oh," was all Judith said as she thought. "So how do you get rid of bullies like him?"

"You have to beat them," said Yumiko. "Be better than them, and don't stoop to their levels."

"Okay," Judith said, making her way over to Magna who was sharpening one of her favorite blades. It was a simple blade, a steel, 7 sided throwing star, the only one she owned.

"Wow!" Judith exclaimed. "When I beat you in a knife throwing competition one day, that's the knife I want." Magna smiled, sitting up in her seat so she could show Judith the different ways to hold the star, the child watching with excitement.

As Magna and Judith talked, Yumiko watched them with a small smile on her face. The sun was now beating down on the group as it was around noon on the road, and Yumiko recognized the small town that they were currently passing through. They were almost to Alexandria, just an hour or two out.

Magna smiled when she looked over and saw Yumiko peacefully sleeping, still propped against the side of the wagon as she was sunbathing. With every little rock or bump, the British woman would jostle a bit but still remain sleeping.

Looking up ahead of the road, Magna could see Justin was still refusing to ride with them. She was glad for that, he didn't deserve to see Yumiko sleeping so peacefully, and she was sure that if he was back here that he would be they got to the middle of town a few walkers made their way out from various different spots. For the most part, the town was closed off and walker free from so many previous travelers. Sighing, Magna stood up and grabbed her long knife, kissing Yumiko on the head before hopping out of the wagon.

It didn't take her long to dispose of the three walkers that had taken interest in the group. Michonne warned her to be careful and make sure they weren't the Whisperers, just as a precaution, so it took Magna a bit longer than it normally would. As she collected her knives from the bodies, Magna jogged to catch up to the wagon that had just turned around the block.

As she made her way around the corner she noticed that Justin had decided to rejoin the group in her absence. She was glad to see that Yumiko was awake and practicing her sign language with Connie and Kelly, but she was still pissed that just because she wasn't around Justin decided to rejoin them.

As he sat on top of his horse, Justin ran his hand through his hair, making sure it was perfect before steering his ride towards the other side of the wagon, where Yumiko was.

"Hey," he said to her. She had obviously heard him, but decided to ignore him. Justin was so close to snapping, but he had done this a hundred times before. He had killed so many people before, but never a lesbian couple. That's what made Yumiko so interesting to him. He was superior to Magna in every way yet she still chose the brunette. "Would you please talk to me?"

Yumiko sighed, turning around to talk to the man who she knew wouldn't take no for an answer.

"What do you want?" She asked him, patience wearing thin.

"I heard about your brain damage, I just wanted to say I'm sorry," he said, putting as much sympathy into his voice as possible.

"I'll be fine one day," Yumiko answered. She was clearly not interested in talking, yet Justin didn't give up.

"I have a question," he said, brushing a strand of hair from his face. When she didn't answer he continued. "Are you bi or are you full on lesbian?"

Yumiko froze at the question for a split second, slightly shocked he would ask, but not too surprised at the same time.

"That's none of your business," she stated calmly as she continued signing back to Connie. "All you need to know is that I love Magna and I will never leave her for you, so whatever this obsession is, it needs to stop."

The words rung throughout Justin's head.

_She loves Magna._

_She will never leave Magna._

_It needs to stop._

Justin gripped the reins tighter than he ever had until his nails dug into his palms, drawing blood.

"We _will _be together one day," he whispered. Justin was reaching for his knife, ready to kill Yumiko and make sure Magna saw the murder, when the latter had finally made it to the wagon.

"Hey Yumiko," greeted the brunette, hopping in with the group as she leaned over and lovingly kissed her girlfriend.

Justin's hand stopped reaching for the knife. He knew he could kill Yumiko but he had to be smart. Besides, he wanted to have some fun with the two of them.

He didn't know why he cut the tree branch back at the dock. It was sloppy and impulsive and it wouldn't have satisfied him if she died so easily. It was better when he saw Magna try and save her, but he didn't think the brunette would actually be able to get Yumiko out from under the mast.

Sighing, Justin decided to start his planning now. He would need a place far away from any of the communities, yet somewhere defensible against walkers. He was sure to attract hordes of them with the screams, he mused.

With one final look at Yumiko, he spurred his horse into action away from the group once again.

"I'm going to look around the town a bit and clear any stray walkers for the next travelers," he called out.

This town was perfect for his plan.

* * *

As the group drove through the gate to Alexandria Yumiko has never been happier. The guest house here was nicer than anything they had at Hilltop, not to mention the beds were huge. She smiled as she looked at Magna, getting some ideas for later that night.

"Uncle Daryl!" Judith called out, hopping off of the wagon to run to the archers open arms. His dog, whose name was ironically Dog, was sitting beside him, ever the loyal pet.

"Hey asskicker!" He picked the young girl up and spun her around in a tight hug before gently placing her down. "How was the ride?"

"It was okay," Judith hummed in thought, looking to the ground.

"Why just okay?" Daryl asked the girl, slinging his crossbow onto his shoulder once again. Judith tapped on him to come down to her height.

"There was a mean guy with us. I don't think he likes Yumiko and Magna very much. And he definitely didn't like when Mom said he had to go back to Hilltop," she whispered to him while glancing at Justin.

"Oh well that's not cool, is it?" He said, following her gaze to the only man he didn't recognize out of the group. Daryl scoffed as Justin pulled a brush out of his backpack and combed out his hair and beard.

"No, he hurt Yumiko," she stated sadly. "It made Magna really sad. Me too, 'coz they're both my friends."

"Well why don't you go find Aunt Carol, I heard she made cookies just for you," Daryl said as he patted her on the back, the nine year old eagerly rushing off at the mention of sugar.

"Hey Redneck," greeted a British accent that Daryl had become accustomed to. Yumiko was just glad she remembered his nickname, and knew his actual one as well. It boosted her mood as she practically skipped to her archer friend.

"Hey, if it isn't the Redcoat," he said with a smile as he approached the group, grabbing a bag from Connie that looked particularly heavy. "I got this," he signed to her sloppily.

Connie gave him a goofy smile and followed him as he led the way to the guest house. Everyone knew where it was at but he wanted to check in on the group, especially after what Judith told him. He just couldn't ask while the new guy was with him.

"So," he started as they walked down the sidewalk. "What brings this crazy group to Alexandria?"

"Michonne brought us along to help with the Whisperers investigation," Magna stated from the back of the group as they rounded a block. It was a chilly spring day but there were still a group of kids that ran around the streets playing basketball and other games.

"So they send the Redcoat and her merry band of dorks," he joked, signing out the whole thing slowly for Connie who looked impressed at his improvement. "I just don't get why they would send a new guy who seems more interested in brushing his hair than anything." 

Yumiko smiled at the snide comment. She knew she was friend with Daryl for a reason. 

"At least I don't look like a sewer rat," Justin said angrily. He didn't know why everyone in the community seemed to hate him. In all of his past travelings he had easily charmed everyone and that's why they never suspected him when couples went missing. 

"My dog looks better than you do on a good day," Daryl said as he walked up the steps and into the guest house, opening the door for everyone. Just as Justin made it to the door though, he shut it. "Sorry, no assholes allowed."

"Then all of you need to come out of the house, except Yumiko that is," he crossed his arms and sat in a chair. "She can stay with me _all_ night long."

Daryl felt Magna shift behind him and reached out to stop her from going on the porch.

"He ain't worth it," he said, turning her around as they all made their way to the living room. "So Judith told me you were hurt Redcoat. What's the deal?"

After Daryl asked the question he could feel everyone in the room tense before Magna spoke up, explaining the story to him, leaving out no details.

"Huh," he said as she finished the story. "Explains his douche attitude and need to groom himself."

"We all just want him gone," Kelly stated for everyone. 

"Yea dude's a serious asshole and creeper," Luke added to the conversation. 

"Not to mention his obvious obsession with Miko," signed Connie.

"Okay," Daryl said as he stood up. "I'll go grab someone who can take him back to Hilltop. Michonne is having some stupid gathering later at the Grimes house, it'll probably be boring but I'm sure you guys would make it bearable if you wanna stop by," he told the group, shooting Connie a parting smile as he left to grab Justin from the porch.

Magna watched as the man stood up to follow Daryl, smirking to the brunette before sending her one of his famous winks. She couldn't explain it but somehow she knew that this isn't the last that they would see of him. For now though, he was gone and that was good enough for her.

"I'm a bit exhausted from the trip today so I think I'm going to take a, um," Yumiko snapped her fingers as she searched for the word. Sighing after more than a few seconds of everyone staring at her, waiting for an answer, she dropped her head and pinched her nose. "I'm going to sleep," she finally said in defeat, throwing her hands up as she made her way upstairs.

On the way to Alexandria everyone kept glancing at Yumiko every time she stuttered or lost her wording. Despite saying she didn't need help with the word she was trying to say the silence became too unbearable for the group and someone would always give her the word she needed.

Yumiko didn't want them to give her the word she was looking for though, she needed to find it on her own or it was only twenty times more frustrating. It was right after she fell asleep sunbathing on the road that she finally snapped.

"I don't need your help!" She screamed at Luke, instantly regretting the outburst. She couldn't help it though, they didn't understand what she was feeling. "I can find my own words," she mumbled before grabbing her bow and quiver and hopping out of the wagon, deciding to walk to a bit.

The group sat in stunned silence afterwards, save Magna. She could tell that her girlfriend was about to burst but she let it happen anyways, the others needed to know what she was feeling. Eventually they all looked to the brunette, waiting to see if she would go and talk to her angry girlfriend.

"Don't look at me," she said with a scoff. "She just needs some alone time, the last thing she wants is someone on her ass."

"But you're always on her ass," Luke said with a laugh before adding, "literally and metaphorically."

Magna sent him death stares and the musician got the message.

_Shut up or I'll find a painful way to push you off the wagon._

As Yumiko's head hit the pillow in the master bedroom the door swung open, revealing her lovely girlfriend who had a dorky grin on her face for some reason. Despite what everyone outside of their small knit group thought, Magna was actually a big goof ball.

"What're you grinning about dork?" Asked Yumiko in concern as her girlfriend continued to approach. Magna only got this look when she was about to do something terrible.

Just as Yumiko was about to speak again she was suddenly rolling over in the bed to avoid being crushed by her girlfriend who had decided to jump onto the bed and sprawl out, giggling as she landed.

"I was about to do that," came Magna's muffled voice from the blankets, her face buried deep.

"Well I see that now Mags."

As Magna sat up in bed she rolled over until she was effectively straddling the taller woman. As they stared at each other it dawned on Magna that they were in a room. Alone. With a very large bed.

A very large _comfy _bed.

It didn't take long before their lips were crashing against each other, hands roaming the others body, desperate for more contact. Just as things were heating up Magna remembered about Yumiko's leg and stopped her girlfriend from placing kissed on her neck.

"Why're we stopping?" Yumiko asked with a pout.

"We aren't," Magna assured her girlfriend as she crawled off her lap. "Lay down," she ordered, the taller woman complying immediately. She grabbed Yumiko's pants and slowly peeled them away, revealing her bandage.

"I'm fine Magna, I promise." When the brunette didn't answer Yumiko started to sit up but was stopped by two gentle hands pushing her back down softly.

"Tonight is about you," Magna stated as her lips attached themselves to Yumiko's neck, sucking softly, lovingly. "I love you Yumiko."

"I love you too, Magna."

"I'll never let anyone hurt you again, I promise." 

"I know Mags, I know."


	3. Chapter 3

As Yumiko and Magna left their room, after forever of convincing from Kelly and Luke, Yumiko hadn't felt this happy in a long time. Well, since she had met Justin anyways.

As they were making their way down the street Yumiko took a moment to close her eyes and breath in some fresh air. It didn't take long for their group to make it to the Grimes household and Connie practically skipped up the stairs.

"Someone is excited to see Daryl," Yumiko signed out very slowly and sloppily.

She had noticed that everytime she tried to remember a word, or how to sign in this case, her head began to feel foggy and it didn't take long for it to ache. She would never stop practicing though.

"Am not!" Connie said back, her hands moving faster as she continued. "I'm simply excited to eat a good meal."

Just as Yumiko was about to shoot back another snarky comment the door swung open, revealing Judith.

"Hi!" She said excitedly, ushering them all in. "Mom is almost done with dinner, but RJ and I already set the table."

Yumiko sat down across from Daryl and watched as Connie sat down next to him, causing the archer to smile and greet her. Magna automatically sat down next to Yumiko, right where she belonged.

Michonne walked into the room with a steaming pot, Carol not far behind her with more food and it wasn't long before the group was eating.

"So Yumiko," said Carol as she scooped mashed potatoes onto RJ and Judith's plate. "I heard you're going to take my place to go see Alpha." The British woman almost dropped her fork at the remark, instead swallowing her mouthful of food and sitting up straight.

"Michonne asked me to join her and the others, yes," she answered honestly. Yumiko felt a hand slip into hers under the table in support, giving it a small squeeze.

She told Magna about her decision earlier in their room, and although her girlfriend wasn't happy about it, she would support Yumiko. Magna even went as far to tell the raven haired woman sprawled on top of her chest that she should start taking on more of a leadership role, which shocked Yumiko. Magna was and always would be the leader when it came to their small group, but that's all she thought she could handle.

"I see," said the older woman as she set the pot down, taking a seat. Yumiko could tell that she was displeased by the fact but couldn't do anything about it.

"So you sent Justin home?" Michonne asked, trying to switch the subject.

"Yea," Daryl answered, not bothering to look up from his plate. "I had Fiona and Landon take him home, they're gonna go camping for a week or so for their honeymoon."

"Oh how was the wedding?" Michonne asked curiously. She had been invited to the wedding but couldn't make it due to the recent Whisperer attacks, or as the people of the communities thought of as freak accidents.

"Good," he answered. "Booze was better though. They found some moonshine a few days before," as Michonne went to talk again he cut her off. "I smuggled two jars for tonight." Daryl reached down to where his bag was and pulled out two jars of clear liquid.

"Daryl, you're my favorite person in the whole world," Michonne said laughing as she unscrewed the lid and took a sip. As the liquid scorched her throat she made a face, causing everyone to laugh around her.

"Pass the jar," Magna said with a smile, Michonne complying without regret. She went to take a sip of her water but Daryl beat her to it, snatching the cup away and out of her reach.

"Ah, ah, ah," he mocked teasingly. "Booze is too precious nowadays to ruin the experience with water."

Dinner went by in a flash, everyone eating their share, not a scrap going to waste. After putting Judith and RJ down for bed, Michonne made her way back downstairs to the living room where everyone was gathered around the coffee table.

"Connie you're up," said Daryl to the older sister. The deaf girl made a face, she didn't want to play this game. "Come on, it's fun!" Argued the archer. Connie sighed, giving in as he dealt the cards.

Yumiko watched everyone playing cards with a smile on her face. She decided at dinner when the jar of moonshine was being passed around that she wasn't going to drink, instead choosing to babysit them all. She watched Magna laughing and joking around with everyone and that's when she realized something.

Even if they had only been with these people for over five months, they were all becoming a family.

Yumiko quietly slipped out the back door and into the cool night air, taking a seat in one of the old beat up lawn chairs. As she lay there, staring up at the sky littered with stars, she felt safe. That was a first in forever.

Yumiko didn't move when she heard the door open behind her and Magna stepped outside, taking a seat across from her.

"What are you doing out here Miko? Everyone's inside having fun, why don't you join us?"

The raven haired woman smiled, closing her eyes again in peace.

"I am having fun Mags. I haven't had this much fun in ages," she answered. Suddenly she felt a weight on her chest and she opened her eyes to see Magna had crawled onto her lap. "What're you doing?" She asked with a giggle.

No one would ever expect it, but underneath Magna's cold exterior she was really just the biggest goofball there was.

"I'm not leaving until I at least get a kiss," the brunette negotiated. Yumiko smiled and happily complied with her very obviously drunk girlfriend. Magna stood up and shrugged out of her brown leather jacket, the same one she's always been careful not to ruin, before wrapping her girlfriend in it, helping put her arms through the holes.

"Thanks," Yumiko said, the warmth was already seeping into her bones and she loved when Magna let her wear her clothes.

"No problem," she said, leaning down for another kiss. "I love you Miko."

"I love you too, Magna. Now go have fun, I'll be out here waiting for you when you want another kiss."

Magna laughed as she made her way back inside the house where there were loud cheers. No sooner than the door closed did Yumiko feel a presence upon her, casting a shadow.

"Mags I just gave you a kiss, do you want another one already?" She asked with a laugh, once again not bothering to open her eyes.

"I would love a kiss, _Miko,_" a chilling voice said from above her, causing her eyes to snap open as she shot up out of the chair. "Don't do anything rash Yumiko, or I swear to God I will go in that house and kill every single one of them. And by the sounds of it, it wouldn't be too hard," Justin finished, flashing a large knife that gleamed in the moonlight, fresh blood still slowly dripping from the handle.

"Justin," she said quietly. "Leave them alone and I'll do whatever you want."

The man laughed, sending chills down Yumiko's spine.

"Of course you will Yumiko. You wanna know why?" He asked as he stepped closer to the tall woman. "Because the first person I will kill is your precious girlfriend. I won't kill her quick either, no that would be too easy. I'm gonna take my time with her, make it painful."

"Don't you touch her," Yumiko said through clenched teeth, her hand balling into a fist.

"Oh I'm not going to touch her, at least not yet. No, the pain she's going to go through is going to be worse than yours I'm afraid," he explained while malice in his voice as he set down a piece of paper on her chair, placing a rock on it so it didn't blow away. "Now let's go before they notice us."

"Where are we going?" She asked with her hands in the air.

"You'll see," was all he said as he shoved her towards the fence. "Let's go."

"There's, um," Yumiko tried to say, the word on the tip of her tongue. She gave up on trying to find the word she was looking for, instead figuring out another way to explain herself. "How are we getting out of here without the night watch seeing us?"

"Oh Yumiko, you think I'm an idiot?" He asked, pointing her towards the wall. "You're going to climb first, and if you run or make any noise to draw attention to us, I'll go make good on my promise. Now get going."

As Yumiko approached the wall and started to climb she realized she didn't have an option here. She wasn't good at close up fighting, that's why she got into archery, and even though she was just as tall as Justin, she was scrawny. Maybe if everyone in the Grimes household wasn't drunk it would be different, but she doubted it. Even if they were sober she wouldn't take the risk.

As Justin jumped down the wall, his knife still present, he directed them towards a horse that was tied up nearby. It was covered in blood, but Yumiko couldn't see any injuries to the animal.

"What happened to the horse Justin?" She asked, approaching the tall beast. It was the same one her and Magna rode.

"There was an accident with my escort," he explained with a laugh. Yumiko's heart dropped at that, thinking of the newlywed couple Daryl said he had sent to escort him.

"What did you do to them?" She asked in fear, turning around to see that Justin was right upon her like he had been the first day they met.

"Nothing to concern yourself with," he said, pinning her against the horse. "Now how about that kiss, Miko?"

"Go to hell," she said angrily, shoving him away with both arms. "You're a sick man, how many people have you killed?"

"Hmm," he said in thought, tracing the tip of the knife across his beard. "I lost count, but I'd say around fourteen or fifteen couples, so around thirty people in total." Yumiko thought she was going to be sick at the fact. "Oh wait! Including Fiona and Landon that makes thirty-two, and once I get my hands on Magna with that sweet little note I left her, it'll be thirty-four."

That did it for Yumiko as she collapsed to the ground on her hands and knees and emptied her dinner.

"Oh Yumiko," he said as he started rubbing her back. "You have such a long few days ahead of you."

Yumiko felt his hand leave her back before something hard connected to the back of her head, everything going black.

* * *

_"Ms. Matsuura," spoke a voice from Yumiko's doorway. "Magna Hilker is here."  
_

_"Thanks Donnie, send her in," she answered with a smile. It had been a few days since the trial began and Yumiko had managed to get Magna out on bail, even going as far as to pay for it herself. _

_The more that Yumiko looked into this case, the more she learned. The man that Magna "murdered" was a mid level mobster that the cops had been using as a criminal informant. The night that Magna found him in that alleyway he had already been shot in the chest and was now holding a woman at gunpoint demanding for her car keys. _

_"I don't have a car I swear! I just waitress here, I wouldn't be able to afford one. Don't hurt me please! I have two kids at home," the woman began sobbing as she fell to her knees._

_"I don't believe you lady! Give me your purse," he said, shoving the gun into her face even more. _

_For Magna it was an average evening, she had just ended her shift at the diner and was walking home when she stumbled upon the scene. Seeing what was happening to the woman, and even relating to her with them both being waitresses, she decided to intervene. _

_"Hey buddy, why don't you put the gun down," she said calmly as she approached him with her hands up. "She doesn't have a car, waitresses in New York hardly make enough for rent." _

_"Who the hell are you?" He asked with a snarl, turning the gun to Magna instead. Perfect, at least the mother was safe._

_"I'm just a concerned civilian," she answered honestly. "How did you get shot?" She asked, gesturing to where he was holding his free hand. He wasn't looking good, thought Magna as she noticed his hands were shaking and he was dripping in sweat._

_"None of your business. Now keep moving before I do something stupid," he said as he went to turn his attention back to his previous victim. _

_"Where do you need to go?" She asked instead. _

_"Like I would tell you, now keep moving!" He screamed this time. _

_"Come on, she's obviously very frightened and doesn't have a car. Let her go, I'll help you," Magna offered as she moved in closer. The man contemplated her offer before nudging the woman on the cement with his gun. _

_"Go on, get outta here!" He said, the woman doing just that as she took off down the street. He turned to Magna this time. "You're a real hero, ya know that?" _

_"I'm not trying to be," she answered honestly. _

_"Good," he said, walking towards her. "Because hero's get killed." _

* * *

When Yumiko finally woke up her head was killing her. Her first instinct was to try and touch it and find where she was hit, but she found that her hands were tied to a chair.

"Ah, so you're finally awake," Justin said from across Yumiko. She looked up and felt her hair sticking to her face from the blood. "Wow! You look like hell and it's only been a few hours."

"Where are we," she muttered weakly, glancing around the room they were in.

It looked like every other house nowadays, old worn down furniture, dust everywhere and the empty feeling that came with an abandoned house. There was one window in what she presumed was the basement, which showed that the moon was still out. It hadn't been too long then, she decided. Someone had to be looking for her by now.

"Just an old house outside of Alexandria. Shongo, I think is what you called it yesterday," he answered while he stared at her deviously. Yumiko shuttered. Shongo was at least an hour away from Alexandria, and she doesn't even know if Magna found the note yet.

"Why did you bring me out here?"

"Oh Yumiko, I know you're smart enough to know the answer to that," he said as he stood up. "Don't worry, Magna should be here soon, and when she does, the real fun can start."

Before Yumiko could say another word Justin walked behind her chair and up the stairs, leaving her to her thoughts.

_Magna should be here soon. _

Yumiko hadn't been this scared before in her life. She hadn't been this scared when she was in a car accident when she was thirteen, claiming the lives of both her parents. She hadn't been this scared when she went skydiving for the first time. She hadn't been this scared when the apocalypse broke out.

She hadn't been this scared because Magna was never involved with any of those.

Magna and her had been together for over seven years now, since before the outbreak. Yumiko gave herself to this woman, she would give her life for the brunette that she loved so deeply, and the years showed that Magna would do the same. That's what scared her the most.

Magna would give her life for Yumiko, and that wasn't an option in her book.

Before she could dwell any longer in her thoughts, she heard footsteps rushing down the stairs once more. Justin appeared with candles, lighting them in all fours corners so that the room was lit up.

"Your girlfriend is here," he said excitedly. "And she actually followed my instructions to come alone." As Justin stood up he unsheathed his knife and turned Yumiko's chair so she was facing the steps, holding the weapon to her throat. They both listened silently as the door opened above them, footsteps entering the house. Justin grinned, shifting the hold of his knife.

"Magna!" Yumiko shouted. "Magna don't come down here, please!"

"Shh, you stupid bitch!" Justin roared, winding up his free hand and delivering a hard blow to Yumiko's already bruised and bleeding temple, causing the British woman to cry out in pain.

"Yumiko!" Magna shouted in worry as she came running down the stairs, her eyes lighting up when she saw her girlfriend. The moment was short lived, however, when she saw all the blood that had dried on the side of her face, and the sight of Justin holding the knife tightly to her throat, causing a drop of blood to spill.

"Ahh, Magna, it's so great of you to join us!" Justin said wickedly. Yumiko could tell he was smiling.

"Let her go Justin," Yumiko pleaded. "Please let her go, I'll do whatever you want."

"I'm not going anywhere Miko," Magna said, letting her girlfriend know that she wasn't leaving even if Justin changed his sick, twisted mind.

"How sweet that you think you have a choice," Justin said. "There's a chair behind us for you Magna, and zips ties that I found in the garage. Sit down and tie you feet to the legs of the chair, then your hand. I'll do you last one."

Magna nodded her head slowly at the demand, holding her hands up like she had all those years ago in the alleyway. Except this time it wasn't some random mother. It was Yumiko.

"Okay Justin, I'm going to go around you to the chair," she said as she made her way around the man, who tipped Yumiko's chair back and turned with Magna, never leaving himself exposed.

"Good girl," Justin said as Magna finally made her way to the chair and began tying her feet down. After Magna had both her feet and one of her hands zip tied down, Justin turned Yumiko's chair so that the two women were facing each other before making his way to the brunette and tying down her last hand.

"Yumiko are you okay?" Magna asked, peeking around Justin to look her girlfriend over.

"I'm fine Mags," she assured the brunette who was clearly not convinced.

"She really is," Justin said as he started to pat Magna down for any hidden weapons. He smirked to himself as he pulled out a knife. "I only hit her twice so far."

"You're a sick bastard," Magna stated as he finally back away from her, having found all three knives she stashed. Justin only laughed as he made his way to a table on the side of the room, under the only window. Both Yumiko and Magna could see the many tools that sat there.

"I've been a very sick man for a very long time, Magna. Even before the apocalypse happened I was practicing my work, my art. It's just fifty times easier now that there's no law enforcement to catch me," he explained himself as he picked up a small knife.

"Is this what you did to Fiona and Landon?" Yumiko questioned him.

"No, those two got off very easy. I killed them earlier this morning, they only had to endure a few hours of fun." When he turned around Magna's saw as he glanced to her.

As long as he hurt her and not Yumiko, everything would be alright.

"Well get on with it then, you sick fuck!" She shouted to him.

"Oh Magna," Justin said with sorrow in his voice. "You're just here to _watch._" As he turned away from Magna and made his way to Yumiko that's when it hit her.

He lured Magna here so she could watch as he tortured Yumiko.

"No!" She screamed louder this time, struggling against her restraints. "Hurt me! Cut me! I don't care, leave her alone!" Magna was rocking back and forth in her chair as Justin crouched before Yumiko, who hadn't moved a muscle.

"Oh I _am _hurting you Magna!" He shouted back before turning to Yumiko. "I did tell you her pain would be worse, didn't I? Watch this," he said in awe, bringing the knife to Yumiko's shirt and slowly cutting it off of the woman.

"Stop it!" Magna shouted once again. "I'll kill you, you hear me?"

Justin laughed as the shirt fell off of Yumiko, leaving her only in her black jeans and black sports bra. He took the brown leather jacket off of her earlier when she was unconscious, already having planned out what he was going to do.

"See what I mean?" He gestured to Magna who had finally stopped rocking in her chair, wrists bleeding from pulling against the zip ties. "This is going to be a far more painful experience for Magna, I'm afraid."

Justin stood up and trailed behind Yumiko this time, her back fully exposed. The British woman still hasn't said anything which surprised Justin. Usually they were crying by now.

"It's okay Magna," she finally spoke when she saw a tear fall from the brunette's eye. "It'll be okay," she said again, and at this point she didn't know if she was trying to reassure herself or her girlfriend. The cold air had finally blew through the shattered window above them, sending cold chills down her now bare spine.

"Oh Yumiko," Justin sing-song, slowly dragging the knife across the top of her back but not cutting. "You're so sweet, that's what brought you to my attention in the first place. You see, I was originally going to kidnap Daryl and Connie, but the love just wasn't there yet. With you two, I can tell you guys really love each other," he said, pushing down on the knife as he began to cut Yumiko's back who didn't cry out in pain, instead choosing to bite her lip. Justin dragged the knife from the top of her back all the way to her collar bone, the fresh blood running down her breasts giving him a thrill.

"I swear to God I am going to kill you," Magna said calmer this time as she watched the blood drip down her girlfriend. She would give anything to trade places with her.

"You know how many times I've heard that same threat before Magna? It's quite tiring hearing it over and over," he said angrily. "So please save me the speech and shut up. The only sound I wanna hear from you is begging or pleading, you got that?" She didn't answer him. "I said," he raised the knife to above Yumiko's breast and sliced it open. "do you got that!"

"Yea, I got that!" Magna shouted in response. She looked to Yumiko who was staring back at her. Their eyes never left each others.

"Magna, I-" Yumiko started to say something but stopped when she felt a fist connect to her mouth, effectively splitting her lip open. She spit blood on the ground.

"Does that make you angry Magna?" Justin questioned as he circled around Yumiko like his prey. "Does it make you angry that I split open the very lips that you kiss?" 

"Yes, Justin. It makes me angry," replied the brunette through clenched teeth, scared what would happen to Yumiko if she didn't answer.

"Good," he answered happily. "How about...this?" He asked her once more before suddenly gripping Yumiko's cheeks roughly, bringing his lips onto her bleeding ones. He only stopped when he felt Magna thrashing in her chair again.

"Don't you touch her!" She screamed, desperately pulling against her zip ties as if they would magically snap.

Justin marched over to Magna angrily and punched her across her cheek, this time causing Yumiko to thrash in her chair, though she was held down by ropes which burned her skin.

"That's just it Magna!" He shouted, punching her once again but in the stomach, causing the brunette to hunch over in pain. "I can do whatever I want to Yumiko because you weren't there for her! You weren't there when I approached her with a knife, poor, poor Yumiko, who isn't bigger than a twig!" He lashed out again, this time with his foot to her chest, sending her flying backwards in the chair, her head bouncing against the ground. "So I will do whatever I want with her, and you'll have to watch!"

"Justin!" Yumiko's shout finally got through to him. "Leave her alone! It's me you want, remember?"

The man smiled at her bravery as he grabbed Magna's shirt and lifted her upright in her chair once more.

"You're right Yumiko," he said as he went to his tray of tools and put the knife down, instead grabbing a small screwdriver. Neither woman had time to react as he took the tool and drove it through Yumiko's hand and into the chair. This finally got Yumiko to scream in intense pain, her vision flashing white as she heard Magna screaming.

Yumiko screamed once again when she felt Justin rip the screwdriver out of her left hand as hot tears began falling down her face. She didn't notice as Justin finally left them alone, the man stomping up the stairs and slamming the door behind him.

"Yumiko, baby, look at me," Magna pleaded. "I'm so sorry," she cried out. "None of this would've happened if I was there for you, he's right."

"No," Yumiko snapped, her head finally shooting up at her girlfriends words. "None of this is your," she stuttered, her mind going blank for the word she needed. "None of it is your doing, only his. Do you understand me?"

"I will get us out of this Miko, I promise you that," Magna stated confidently.

"I know Mags, I know. I love you."

"I love you too, Yumiko."


	4. Chapter 4

It was a few hours after Justin had left them in the basement that Magna heard the front door slam close. Yumiko had fallen asleep about a half hour ago and she worried that the raven haired woman had a concussion as her girlfriend struggled to stay awake in the first place.

Magna refused to sleep, her need to protect Yumiko stronger. As she looked to the side of the window she could see that it was finally dawn, meaning someone would have to find the note that Justin left for them. Hopefully it didn't take them as long to find this house as it did for her.

Justin had obviously thought his plan out, leaving Magna the note with specific instructions and leading her to Shongo. The brunette was never one to go down without a fight, but with Yumiko's life on the line, she wasn't willing to risk anything.

"Magna..." a sleeping Yumiko mumbled, eyes closed. Before Magna could awake her, the raven haired woman shot upright and frantically pulled against her ropes, confusion written all over her face till her eyes landed on Magna.

"It's okay Yumiko, I'm right here baby," Magna assured her as Yumiko settled down, soft brown eyes finding Magna's green ones. "Bad dream?"

"Yea, you could say that," she answered, wishing she could wipe the sleep from her eyes. Remembering her nightmare Yumiko couldn't help but feel hopeless, like there was no way out for them.

"What's wrong Miko?" Magna asked at the look of despair on her face.

"I just," Yumiko started, "I just wish that you hadn't listened to his letter," she admitted as tears sprung to her eyes.

"Hey, I will _always _come for you, Miko. Remember Castro?" Asked Magna, causing Yumiko to shudder at the memory.

"Yea, and how did that turn out for you Mags?"

"Well I got you out of there alive, right?"

"Yea but you were half dead by then."

"This is going to be different," Magna said confidently, adjusting her position in her chair as best she could. As she did, she winced in pain as the zip ties rubbed at her bleeding and bruised wrists.

"Whatever happens Mags please remain calm, you're hurting yourself," pointed out Yumiko in sympathy. The woman herself was in even worse condition with half of her face bruised and caked in blood, her split lip and she determined that she definitely had a concussion.

"I can't remain calm Miko, not when he's hurting and kissing you like he owns you!" Magna argued angrily at the memory. When she saw Justin reach down and roughly kiss her something in her snapped. After watching the psychopath cut Yumiko's shirt off she could figure where he was going with it, but Magna was useless tied up.

She longed to feel her fist against Justin's face again and she couldn't wait till she got an opportunity, and she had already made a plan.

"I'll be fine Mags, I promise. But you need to be able to fight if we get the, um, the..." as Yumiko trailed off Magna suddenly got worried. She almost drowned last week, and now she had a concussion, she was sure of it with the bruising on her face. That wasn't good.

"It's okay Miko, I know what you mean," she said comfortingly. "Listen, I have a sort of plan to get us out of this hell."

"I'm listening," Yumiko said, leaning her head back in her chair and closing her eyes.

"Well that broken window left glass all over the floor, so if I could just get a piece of it and cut your ropes, we'll be home free," she explained. Magna watched as her girlfriend leaned up and inspected the glass on the floor with hopeful eyes.

"How are we going to get it?" She asked the obvious question to which Magna didn't have an answer to yet.

"Haven't gotten that far," she answered honestly. "How's your hand?"

Yumiko didn't even want to look at her hand which was throbbing with pain, which was a good thing that she could still feel it.

"Can hardly feel it," she lied with a wide grin on her face. Something that Magna learned about Yumiko a long time ago was that her girlfriend had a surprisingly high pain tolerance. So when she _was _in pain, Magna knew it was serious.

"Don't be a smart ass Miko," she said bluntly, giving her girlfriend the look that said 'I don't believe you for a second.'

"It hurts, but that's a good thing since I can still feel it. It also hasn't bled too badly, so I doubt it hit anything vital," she explained to the brunette. She was about to ask how Magna's ribs felt after Justin kicked her, but the sound of the front door opening and slamming again silenced both of them.

"Damn it," Magna cursed under her breath. She looked to the glass on the floor once again, trying to figure out how she was going to grab a piece.

"I'm back ladies!" Shouted Justin as he slowly made his way down the stairs, two buckets of water in his hand. He set them down before going up to grab another two, then another, and another until he had a total of twelve buckets of water in the basement.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what the water was for, and Magna's suspicions were soon confirmed when she saw Justin grab a large, thick towel from the cupboard by his tools.

"Why so quiet this morning?" He asked as he made his way to Yumiko's chair, kneeling before her as he examined her hand. "I'm sorry about my outburst earlier," he said sincerely, causing Magna to roll her eyes in disgust.

"It's fine," said Yumiko almost angrily, just barely holding back the disgust in her voice as she tried to free her bleeding hand from Justin's much larger one.

"It's not, and I brought back some bandage's so it doesn't get infected," he answered, standing up to grab the bandages.

"How sweet of you," Magna said, unable to hold the comment back. Justin only laughed as he made his way back to Yumiko and started gently cleaning and wrapping her hand.

"The only reason I'm doing this is so our dear Yumiko doesn't die any earlier than I want her to, so sure, call me sweet if you want Mags," he winked to her, knowing it pissed her off. If only she wasn't tied down, she thought to herself.

"What's the water for?" Yumiko asked with fear in her voice. Ever since the boat incident she was terrified of water, and for a good reason. Yumiko wasn't stupid though, she knew what the water was for.

"It's for you, Yumiko. I thought that since the boat didn't kill you we could try and re-do the whole drowning thing," he answered, finishing up with her hand before putting away the supplies.

"I knew it was you," Magna scoffed, watching every little thing that the psychopath did.

"Yea, it was me. Surprise!" He said, throwing his hands up in sarcasm. "It was stupid of me, I must admit. It was am impulsive decision, and a dumb one at that since I almost killed you before we had fun Yumiko," he gently rubbed the back of his hand across her face, making Yumiko shift as far away from him as possible.

"Don't touch me," she spat at him, unable to move any further in her chair as he continued. He stared at her for what felt like forever before snapping out of his trance and grabbing a bucket of water, dipping the towel in it.

"Don't be like that Yumiko, we're about to have fun!" He exclaimed way too happily.

"Don't do this Justin!" Yelled Magna as she started pulling at her restraints once again. The action caused her wrists to start bleeding again, but she hardly felt it with her heart racing at what was about to happen.

"That's what I like to hear!" He said, picking the soaking wet towel out of the bucket. "Keep begging Magna," he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. "It's what I love to hear."

"Don't beg to this sick fuck Mags," said Yumiko, even though Magna could hear the fear in her voice.

"Shut up!" Yelled Justin angrily as his eyes snapped open once more. Magna feared that he was about to hit her girlfriend again but he reacted instead by folding the towel up and placing it on Yumiko's face, tying it down with a piece of clothe tightly. He's definitely done this before.

"No! Do it to _me! _Wouldn't you like to hear Yumiko beg for once?" She asked, desperate to stop what was happening right in front of her.

"Oh Magna, don't you understand that I don't want Yumiko to suffer? I _love _her, more than you could even understand. Ever since I laid eyes upon her that fateful day in the woods, I knew that she was mine. That's why I traveled to Hilltop, why I joined your stupid society. For her."

Magna felt like throwing up. Justin just admitted to having watched them for weeks before they even knew who he was.

"You're sick," she said, eyeing him coldly. He shrugged as an answer, picking up a bucket of water.

"Please don't," Yumiko pleaded weakly through the towel on her face. Magna could hear the panic and fear in her voice, and she was sure there were tears underneath the towel. She was about to drowned once again, and Magna couldn't do anything to stop it.

"Shh, Miko. I'm sorry, but I have to do this," Justin whispered sweetly. Then he started slowly pouring water where he knew her mouth and nose were.

Magna screamed on the top of her lungs. She doesn't remember what all she said, she just knew that she wanted it to stop. She watched slowly as Yumiko jerked her head side to side, desperate for air, gasping weakly through the water. It felt like it was hours before Justin finally put the empty bucket on the ground, instantly grabbing another one and going back to work.

"Beg Magna!" He screamed as he started dumping the second bucket. He dared a glance to Magna who he could see struggling against her chair, making him smile, but it wasn't enough. He wanted to hear her beg. "BEG!" He screamed madly.

"Stop! Please stop Justin you're going to kill her!" Magna pleaded, tears freely falling down her cheeks. She didn't have to be told to beg because that's exactly what she was doing.

"Louder!" He said as he picked up a third bucket and started emptying it again. It's been at least two minutes since he began and Yumiko's movements were beginning to slow down.

It was on the fourth bucket of water that Yumiko stopped moving altogether and that's when Magna realized something. He wanted her to beg. That's why he wasn't stopping. It didn't matter how much the brunette begged for him to stop, he was enjoying hearing her beg. So she went dead silent, as painful as it was.

"Yumiko," she said instead. "Yumiko, I'm right here baby, be strong. You've got to be strong."

"I said beg!" Justin screamed for what felt like the millionth time as he moved on to the fifth bucket.

"No."

"What?" He said in shock, lowering the bucket. Magna sighed in relief that the water wasn't being dumped anymore, but it was short lived when she saw that her girlfriend still wasn't moving.

"I said no," she said again, her voice shaking. "I won't beg for you, you sick fuck! Because no matter how much I do you still won't stop!"

"You insolent little bitch!" His voice was nothing but pure rage as he dumped the rest of the almost full bucket onto Yumiko at once, dropping it as he made his way to Magna.

"You're going to kill-" Magna never finished though as she was backhanded. She swore she saw stars.

"I know what I'm doing and she's fine," he said calmer this time. He looked back to the soaking wet woman that he claimed to love before realizing that the brunette might be right. Yumiko wasn't moving. He was so caught up in listening to Magna beg that he hadn't realized he'd gone through almost half his water.

"She isn't moving!" Magna screamed. Her heart dropped. Yumiko wasn't moving. Was she dead? Again? "Untie me, let me help her!"

"You're fucking stupid if you think I'll untie you," he sneered, making his way to Yumiko's side to check her pulse. "She's still alive, just unconscious."

"Please Justin, just give me half an hour with her to make sure she's alright," Magna asked, her voice broken. He looked to Magna before deciding.

"Okay," he said as he gathered up his tools and placed them upstairs. "I'm going to cut you free, and Yumiko. I'll be back soon though, so don't try anything."

Magna couldn't believe her ears. He agreed.

"I won't," she lied. She couldn't believe he was so stupid.

Justin made his way over to her and cut her legs free and then her hands, pointing the knife at her threateningly.

"I know how to use this, don't forget." Magna only nodded, rubbing her raw wrists as she watched Justin leave the basement, shutting and locking the door on his way out.

Magna didn't waste a second as she made her way to Yumiko, unwrapping the towel from her face. It didn't take her long to untie the ropes holding her girlfriend down and soon enough they were both free. As Magna grabbed her soaking wet girlfriend she realized how cold the water was.

Yumiko was white, too white. Not to mention ice cold.

"Yumiko, baby, please open your eyes for me," she pleaded as she carried her to the corner furthest away from the door, sitting down, cradling the frozen woman against her chest. Magna quickly grabbed her brown jacket from the table above them as she wrapped Yumiko in it tightly, trying to give her as much body heat as possible. She was still impossibly freezing.

As they sat there Magna couldn't even worry about their escape but she did grab the biggest piece of glass she could find on the ground. It wasn't bigger than her thumbnail.

Magna looked Yumiko over, worried that she hadn't woke or even stirred. Her face was mostly cleared of blood due to the water, but the purple and blue bruising was still there. Her lip was split wide open and she was sure it needed stitches. Yumiko's hand was wrapped but Magna didn't mess with it. Instead she gently grabbed her icy hands in her own, pulling her girlfriend tighter to her chest if that was even possible. The movement caused the woman to twitch in pain.

"Yumiko?" She whispered. "Can you hear me?" 

"Magna?"

"Yea baby, I'm here."

"I'm cold." 

"I know honey," Magna said as tears ran down her face once again. "It'll all be over soon though, I promise." She kissed Yumiko's forehead lovingly.

"Please don't leave me," Yumiko cried out, her hands grasping for Magna. She still hasn't opened her eyes and was hardly awake.

"I'm not going anywhere Miko, I promise. Where you go, I go. Remember?" She stated the same thing Yumiko told her years ago in the basement of a Mafia hideout. "And I'm not going anywhere, so you can't either."

"I know, I'm just _so cold."_

"I know baby, hold on though Miko. Hold on for me. I'm going to end this."


End file.
